Before my Korean Air mileage expires, I decided to use it up.
And since I wanted to spend my birthday somewhere other than home,
I booked a flight to Kagoshima.
The destination is Kagoshima —
my hottest travel spot these days.
It’s a place full of fresh seafood,
and everything from beef to pork to chicken tastes amazing.
Especially the rich, nutty flavor of Kagoshima Kurobuta pork — I can’t resist it.
Another reason I like Kagoshima is that
I’ve already been to most of the famous tourist spots.
So this time, it’s all about relaxing,
and just wandering around to eat good food.
Since I’m using mileage, I have to book with Korean Air.
But Korean Air only has one flight a day to Kagoshima Airport,
and it leaves at 8:45 a.m.
Of course, I could have flown to Fukuoka,
then taken the shinkansen to Kagoshima.
But I didn’t want to pay extra for the train,
and this time I wanted to try flying directly into Kagoshima Airport.
Later, I found out this choice
would completely shape how this trip turned out.
A few days before departure, I got a message saying
that security checks might take longer because of APEC.
Usually I arrive about two hours before the flight,
but this time I thought I should leave earlier.
Departure at 8:45.
Boarding at 8:15.
The ride to the airport takes about an hour and a half.
Wait — that means I need to take the first airport bus, right?
If the bus leaves at 4 a.m.,
I need to wake up at 3 a.m. to get ready.
But my usual bedtime is… after 3 a.m.
I had dinner early and tried to sleep,
but couldn’t. I just lay there,
and eventually got up at 3 a.m. without sleeping.
I took the first bus,
and even at that hour, the airport was already crowded.
Still, check-in, security, and immigration were smooth and fast.
In the end, I arrived at Gate 219,
my boarding gate, two hours before departure.
I wondered, why did I rush out so early like this?
Well, it’s still better than being late and panicking.
And actually, I once missed a flight before —
because I overslept.
So I just closed my eyes,
sat back comfortably,
and waited for two hours.
One difference this time:
I wasn’t allowed to put my battery pack in the overhead bin.
There must have been a recent fire incident on a plane,
because the rules seem to have changed.
While waiting at the gate, ground staff walked around
attaching tags that said “No battery in this bag.”
Portable batteries had to be placed in a clear zip bag
and kept in the pocket in front of my seat.
It takes about an hour and a half
from Incheon to Kagoshima.
I got a window seat this time,
and it felt nice to see the clouds again.
I thought I could see Sakurajima far away,
and before long, I landed at Kagoshima Airport.
Now, the journey begins.
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